RIVERSVILLE SERIES #1
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WARNING: MATURE CONTENT
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Bella was in love with Zayne. He was her dream guy at alam niyang may gusto rin sa kaniya ang lalaki.
Hinihintay niya na lang na umamin ito sa kaniya.
Hanggang sa dumating nga ang araw n...
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I came down to the living room to find my younger brother talking to someone on the computer.
Mom and Dad were sitting next to him.
"Who are you talking to?" I asked, and all three of them suddenly turned to me.
"Okay, Ate Bella, bye po," Jared said as he waved goodbye.
"Bye, anak," Mom replied.
"I miss you, Belle."
I looked at the three of them with confusion in my eyes.
"It was my daughter," Dad answered simply before returning his attention to the TV.
The computer screen had gone dark.
"Ate Belle is in Paris right now, and she’s looking really beautiful," my brother said, walking over to me.
It had been a year since Belle went to New York. I hadn’t heard a word from her, not even a simple “How are you?” All I knew was that my parents were frequently chatting with her online, and my brother often spoke to her too.
Except for me.
“If you were my age, I would have made Ate Belle my girlfriend by now,” Jared joked.
“Shhh, Jared. Don’t bother your brother,” Mom chided gently.
“Mom, can I marry Ate Belle when I grow up?” Jared persisted.
“It’s better that my youngest isn’t as clueless as some people around here,” Mom teased, glancing at me.
I turned to her, surprised. What did she mean by that?
“But can I marry Ate Belle?” Jared pressed on.
“First, you need to grow up, bunso. Get a stable job, and if Ate Belle is still single by then, maybe you can marry her,” Mom said, smiling.
I didn’t know why I suddenly felt irritated by their conversation. It felt wrong somehow.
“Shut up, Jared. You’re not even good-looking enough for Bella,” I blurted out before I could stop myself.
Even I was taken aback by my words.
“You may be handsome, Kuya, but did Ate Belle ever like you?” Jared shot back.
I fell silent at my brother’s question.
Why hadn’t I thought of that?
Out of all the girls who liked me, why hadn’t I ever considered whether Bella felt the same way?
But I quickly pushed that thought aside. Belle wasn’t one of those girls. She had changed because she probably felt I took her best friend away from her.
I felt a pang of guilt at that realization, but it quickly morphed into frustration. Had I really lost her as a friend? Did I really let a relationship with Hailey come between us?
